


Life Used To Be So Hard

by Brumeier



Series: Life in the Yukon [12]
Category: Stargate Atlantis, The Sentinel (TV)
Genre: Alaska, Alternate Universe - Small Town, Dysfunctional Family, Established Relationship, M/M, Moving In Together, Romantic Gestures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-24
Updated: 2020-09-24
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:07:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26633362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brumeier/pseuds/Brumeier
Summary: John is making a grand gesture, Rodney is re-evaluating his long-term life goals, and Jeannie is throwing a wrench in the works. Just another day in Lantea, Alaska!
Relationships: Rodney McKay/John Sheppard
Series: Life in the Yukon [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1095657
Comments: 28
Kudos: 65
Collections: SGA Saturday Prompt Challenge





	Life Used To Be So Hard

**Author's Note:**

> Written for sga_saturday prompt: ice

_That was_ Se Ei Käy _by the Finnish group Lapinlahden Linnut, by special request. Just because you don’t speak the language doesn’t mean you can’t sing along! That concludes this week’s World Music hour here on K-LAN. Remember, if you want me to play a song for you next time, you’ll need to send me a digital copy. The stacks here at the station aren’t what I’d call diverse._

_If you haven’t been to the Café in the last week, I suggest you pop in and meet our new short order cook, Mavis Hamilton. I think Evan has finally met his match in the kitchen, which is good news for those of us with diverse taste buds. Speaking of diversity._

_Be careful going out and about today, Lanteans. The temp has gone down and the wind is whipping, so bundle up. And remember, spring is only a month away! Think warm thoughts!_

_This is Blair Sandburg, signing off for the day. Playing me out will be The Young Dubliners with_ Real World. _Enjoy!_

*o*o*o*

“You couldn’t show me this in spring?” Rodney complained.

It was colder than the ninth circle of hell – the wind was blowing icy droplets of freezing rain in the little bit of his face that wasn’t covered by the furry hood of his parka – and they were losing what little bit of light they had.

“No,” John said. 

“So what are we looking at?”

“Just take it all in,” John replied. He waved his arm around like Vanna White.

Rodney took it in. He saw snow, snow, and more snow. Icicles hung off the pine trees. They were on a hill overlooking Lantea, with Peace Ridge rising up in the opposite direction. It was all very Alaska.

“I’ve taken it in. Can we go now? My lower limbs are going numb.”

“I bought it,” John said. He didn’t seem to be affected by the cold weather at all, despite the fact his parka was much thinner. “The sale finalized today.”

It took a minute for his words to sink in. “You bought it. What exactly did you buy?”

“Four acres with a view.” 

“Why the hell would you do that?” Rodney asked, honestly curious. Moreso when John suddenly looked bashful. The biting wind made it impossible to tell if he was blushing.

“Thought I might build a house.”

Rodney snorted, but that meant he inhaled some of that icy wind. He winced and cupped his mittened hands over his nose and mouth. “Fucking winter. How are you going to build a house? You can barely maintain the one I’m living in.”

“It’s gonna be a log house,” John said, as if he hadn’t heard. “I’m thinking tongue and groove.”

“You already have a house,” Rodney pointed out.

John shrugged. “It’s not big enough.”

Rodney was sure his brain was getting hypothermic, because he was losing the thread of the conversation.

“Why do you need a bigger house? It’s not like you throw parties.”

Another shrug, and John wasn’t making eye contact.

“Figured I could put in a nice study, maybe a rooftop platform for a telescope. You know, this is closer to the observatory than your place.”

Rodney shoved his hands back in his pockets and hunched his shoulders against the wind. Telescope? Observatory? He gave John a speculative look, which wasn’t easily managed with little balls of ice clinging to his eyelashes.

“What’s going through that spiky-haired head of yours?”

John rubbed the back of his neck, a sure sign that he was about to say something that made him either nervous or uncomfortable. Probably both.

“John?”

“I thought it might be nice if we shared it. The house.”

Rodney was a certified genius, but he hadn’t anticipated that development.

“Is buying four acres of frozen tundra and building a house on it your way of asking me to move in with you? Because that’s insane.”

And yet the grandness of the gesture lit a little spark of warmth in Rodney. Never before had he been in a relationship that led to him living with the other person. No-one else could tolerate him on a daily basis. 

Why was everything so much simpler with John?

“Which is the insane part?” John asked, shooting a glance at Rodney.

“The part where you bought property,” Rodney clarified. 

John grinned. “So that’s a yes? To moving in?”

Life had been much harder before the imposed exile to Alaska. For whatever reason, the town of Lantea had pulled Rodney in. Made him one of them. Or maybe it was just John, who never asked Rodney to be something he wasn’t. In either case, his answer was easy.

“That’s a qualified yes,” Rodney clarified. “If you’re going to build me a house, it needs to have high-end plumbing and heating. And no rats.”

“Done.”

John tugged Rodney close and kissed him, which might’ve been nice if their faces weren’t both so frozen.

“If I promise to listen to your plans for the house, can we do it inside? Where there’s heat?”

“Whatever you want,” John said.

Rodney wanted a lot of things, but most of them would have to wait till he got feeling back in his extremities. 

He wondered how long it took to build a house.

*o*o*o*

**Three Months Later**

Rodney was exhausted. He’d put in a full shift at the observatory, and then gone over to the building site for a few hours of manual labor. He needed a nice, hot shower, something to eat, and possibly a nap. 

The new house was going up quicker than Rodney had expected, but then he’d momentarily forgotten where he lived. Everyone in Lantea was pitching in, one way or another, and it was a relief to know John wasn’t doing all the hard work alone when Rodney wasn’t able to be there.

They hadn’t talked about what it meant, building the house and moving in together. Maybe they both understood, or maybe Rodney was just afraid to say aloud that he was now living in Alaska for the foreseeable future. A house – and John – was a big commitment. Rodney was going to have to adjust his life plan and that was a scary thought.

“Oh, now what?” he grumbled. 

There was a strange car parked in his driveway, and whoever had driven it there was not sitting inside it. Which meant they were probably in his house, trespassing. Wonderful.

Rodney leaned over and popped the glove box, fishing around in there until he found the bear spray (he believed in being prepared). If it was good enough to send bears running, it should work on human intruders.

He approached his front door cautiously, bear spray held out in front of him as he opened it and stepped inside. The first thing he noticed was that his coffee maker was on and the pot was mostly full. The second thing he noticed was the suitcase by the couch.

Had John failed to tell Rodney he’d rented out the house to new tenants?

And then his little niece came running from the bedroom, blonde pigtails streaming, and threw herself at Rodney.

“Unca Mer!”

Rodney picked her up, making sure she couldn’t reach the bear spray in his hand. “Maddy? What are you doing here? Where’s your mother?”

Madison put a finger to her lips and blew a raspberry on it. “Shh! Mommy sleeping.”

“She didn’t tell me you were coming to visit.” Rodney shifted Madison so he could balance her on his hip, and put the bear spray in one of the upper cabinets she couldn’t reach.

“It’s not a visit,” a sleepy voice said behind them. 

Rodney turned to see his sister leaning in the doorway, her clothes rumpled and her curly blonde hair very obviously having been slept on.

“What?”

“I left Kaleb. We need a place to stay. I hope you don’t mind.” Jeannie yawned. “I’m gonna take a shower. We can talk after.”

Rodney watched her shuffle off, aware that his mouth was hanging open. Just what he needed: family drama. He looked at Madison, who looked back at him with a solemn expression on her face.

“Now what?” he asked.

Madison shrugged. 

“You any good with a hammer?”

“No,” she replied, shaking her head.

So much for escaping back to the building site. “Hungry?”

Madison nodded.

Rodney sat her on the counter and started pulling out food. He wasn’t looking forward to talking to Jeannie about the state of her marriage. What offensive thing could the bland English teacher have possibly done? And how quickly could they get their acts together so Rodney could get back to his own life? What if Jeannie decided to stay indefinitely? What would she think of John?

Most importantly, how long would he have to wait for a hot shower?

**Author's Note:**

>  **AN:** Title from the song [Our House](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKYjUn-SBcg) by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
> 
> I’d been wanting to write more in this ‘verse, but I was stuck. And stuck on a completely different SGA ‘verse as well. The solution to both? Send in Jeannie! LOL! She’s good at stirring things up. Plus, who doesn’t enjoy some quality Madison time?
> 
> **Song List**
> 
> [Se Ei Käy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yr_Rzj1Hxb8), by Lapinlahden Linnut
> 
> [Real World](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vj1lUk5yCzM), by The Young Dubliners


End file.
